Our Truth
by MarciaRebafan
Summary: Set after the end of season 6, Reba and Barbra Jean have a serious conversation and at the same time, in a different place, Brock and Van are talking about the same exact thing. One-shot.


A/N: I tried to make this story as correct as possible, grammar wise, but English is not my mother language so please bear any mistakes I may have done.

"Does she have to come along?" Reba looked at her eldest daughter with a pouty look, following her around the kitchen.

Cheyenne picked up some toys and dropped them in Elizabeth's toy-box, then she looked up at her mother, "Yes, she does." She took a deep breath and patted her belly, pretty rounded in her fifth month of pregnancy. "I don't know what's up with you and Barbra Jean lately, and why you don't want to see her, but she is coming along."

"Why I don't want to see her? Let me think…maybe because she stole my husband?" Reba raised an eyebrow and scoffed.

Cheyenne rolled her eyes, "Come on, mom that was years ago and now you're pretty cool with it… and you were starting to like having her around… What's going on?" She sat down at the kitchen table and motioned for her mother to sit down as well.

Reba sat down next to Cheyenne and sighed, "I don't know what's up with her, she is so nasty at me lately… like snapping at me all time and always arguing… I thought we were getting along well, and still she seems mad at me… That is why I don't want her there. That is our night, I-"

"Yeah, that is our night, yours, Barbra Jean's and mine. We planned it weeks ago, mom, dad and Van already said yes to baby-sitting, it's just perfect. Can't you try to get along with her just for a night? Please?" Cheyenne made the puppy dog eyes and smiled.

"It's not me, it's her! She doesn't want to get along with me!" Reba defended herself. The situation with Barbra Jean was getting on her nerves, she had never thought she could be hurt because she didn't get to see Barbra Jean as often as before, but yet she was annoyed by it. Barbra Jean was really starting to grow on her and she liked to hang out with her, but now she wasn't so sure it was a good idea to go out with her since she was so cold and distant lately.

"Okay, look, I'll talk to her and we'll sort this out, okay? But you promise you're coming…"

Reba took a deep breath and nodded, "Fine, I'll come along." She got up and smiled. "I'll see you tonight, then…"

Cheyenne got up as well and hugged her mother, "Yes, see you later… I'll talk to her right away…" She smiled. "Thank you, mom."

Reba hugged her back and took her purse heading for the door, "You're welcome, sweetie… See you later…"

--

"Oh no, I'm not coming along."

Cheyenne rolled her eyes, "Barbra Jean, please… Mom already said yes, and it took me a while to talk her into doing that… We planned it weeks ago and it means a lot to me… Please…"

Barbra Jean shook her head and started to walk around the kitchen, trying to clean what was already spotless, "I'm sorry for you, Cheyenne, I know you were looking forward to it, but I'm not coming along…"

Cheyenne followed her around, sighing, "Why not? What's wrong?"

"That is between your mother and me, sorry but it is none of your business."

"She doesn't know what's wrong, Barbra Jean! She is as confused as I am, she just noticed you're around less and you don't talk to her anymore… and when you do you just argue and snap at her… She is hurt by that…" Cheyenne tried to reason with her and find out what the problem was at the same time.

Barbra Jean scoffed, "Oh, I bet she knows exactly what is wrong… She is not stupid and she knows what she is doing…" She clenched her fists slightly, narrowing her eyes at the thought.

Cheyenne let herself fall on a chair and rolled her eyes, "What would she be doing, now? Just tell me what it is, maybe I can help… She's upset because she doesn't get to go out with you and have you around…"

Barbra Jean's eyes lit for a second and she smiled a little, "She said that?" Then she seemed to remember that she was mad at Reba and folded her arms, frowning again, "Well, even if she did I don't care. I'm not going to spend the whole night with her…"

"Barbra Jean, just try to sort it out, okay? I can leave you two alone for a while when we are at the bar and you can talk about whatever is bothering you, okay? I'm pregnant and I don't want my child to grow up in a family filled with hatred and nasty feelings, okay? I want it to be okay like it was before…" Cheyenne once again made the puppy dog eyes and that melted Barbra Jean's heart.

She smiled a little and nodded, "Fine, I'll go… But I'm not talking to her ever again if she isn't willing to sort it out tonight…"

Cheyenne grinned, "Awesome! See you later, then…" She hugged her briefly and smiled as she walked out of the house to go back to her own house.

--

"Okay, everything is set. You just need to make the kids shower and put them in bed… but you can let them watch a movie or something first, it's not a school night so it will be okay…" Reba hurried down the stairs in her black, tight slacks and a red blouse with several buttons undone so that it showed a good amount of her cleavage.

Brock rolled his eyes, "Reba, we both have children… and the kids we are gonna baby-sit are our own kids, no need to give us directions…"

She chuckled, "I know, I'm sorry… Well, have a good night with them… See you later…" She smiled and grabbed her purse and her keys.

Brock nodded, "Have fun… and…Reba?" She turned around to look at him questioningly and Brock felt his mouth get dry, "Can't you button up that blouse a little?...Maybe?" He backed away, afraid to get hit by her.

Reba just glared at him and kissed the kids goodbye.

"Mrs. H?" Van walked behind the couch and cleared his throat, checking the distance between him and his mother-in-law.

"What?" Reba snapped and rolled her eyes.

"It would do no harm if you'd button up that blouse a little…" He mumbled.

She sighed and rolled her eyes again, walking out of the door without sparing them another look.

"Guess she isn't going to do that…" The two men exchanged looks and shrugged, starting to take care of their kids.

--

"Reba." Barbra Jean coldly greeted her and sat down next to Cheyenne at the table in the crowded bar.

"Hi, Barbra Jean." Reba gave her a little smile, trying to be nice, but she noticed how cold Barbra Jean was to her. "How are you?"

"Fine." Barbra Jean's short answer annoyed Reba, who rolled her eyes and clenched her teeth.

"Great." Reba took hold of her drink and took a big gulp of it, avoiding her eyes.

Cheyenne's eyes moved to her mother to her step-mother and she sighed when she saw how the two women acted towards each other. "Are you even going to stop this?"

"Stop what? She doesn't want to talk to me, that is as clear as day! Why did you even come along if you so can't stand the sight of me?" Snapped Reba, glaring at Barbra Jean.

She glared back at the redhead, "I only came because Cheyenne begged me to. I wasn't going to spend the night here with you, but then Cheyenne made the puppy dog eyes and I said yes."

"Well, I didn't want you here either, it was Cheyenne's idea! I don't see why I should want to spend time with you when all you do lately is being nasty at me!" Reba raised her voice and folded her arms over her chest, staring into Barbra Jean's eyes.

Cheyenne took a deep breath as she watched the two women stare at each other, and she decided that it was wiser to leave them alone to sort out whatever problem there was between them. Her mother would have told her about it later anyway, so she wouldn't even have to eavesdrop. "Oh look, isn't that my friend Kimberly? I haven't seen her in ages, it's so cool… I'll be right back, okay?" She swallowed when she got no reply from either of the women and quickly stood up, walking to the farthest side of the bar.

Reba leant back in her chair and kept staring at Barbra Jean, getting angrier by the second with her silence, "So what's wrong with you? What's the problem?"

Barbra Jean folded her arms over her chest and narrowed her eyes, "Are you sleeping with my husband?"

--

"Elizabeth is asleep…" Van walked back down in the living room to find his father-in-law sitting on the couch, his son asleep on his lap.

"Henry is off too…" Brock chuckled. "They were tired after all the playing the got going on at the park. I'm gonna take him upstairs." He got up and picked his son up in his arms, walking upstairs and laying him on the bed next to Elizabeth. Then he kissed both kids' foreheads and walked back downstairs.

"It wasn't as hard as Mrs. H made it sound…" Van shrugged and leant back against the couch, turning on the TV.

Brock sat down next to him and leant against the couch as well, "Yeah, besides Henry and Elizabeth are easy kids…" He smiled and watched the TV quietly for a while, then he cleared his throat. "Reba was gorgeous tonight…" He commented casually.

Van nodded, his eyes still glued to the screen, "She sure was…"

"Do you know if she's seeing anyone?" Brock eyed the screen, not really seeing anything on it, his mind being too crowded with other thoughts.

"Nah, I don't think so… She is looking though, she told me… She is looking for the right one… We talked about this over and over on our way to work in the mornings… I like to talk to her and I feel good when she tells me stuff she doesn't usually tell other people…" Van smiled and glanced at his father-in-law, his eyes going back to the screen immediately.

Brock swallowed hard, "So she's looking, huh? Has it been long since she started doing that?"

Van shrugged, "Have no clue… she just told me a few weeks ago that she might have found someone… but she said he doesn't even know she exists… and I honestly don't think that any man would ignore her, I mean, she is good-looking for a woman her age…"

Brock silently glared at him and kept watching TV absent-mindedly, thinking about Van's words. She was trying to move on, and yet he couldn't get her out of his mind. She was always there, killing him inside, making him curse himself when he thought of what he had done to her and what he had just thrown away when he let her sign those papers.

"Van, can I tell you something?" He asked after a while.

Van nodded without looking at him, "Sure, what is it?"

"Erm…it's kinda serious… can we stop watching TV for a while?"

"Fine…" Van sighed and turned off the TV, turning around to look at Brock, "Man, now I see who Cheyenne took after…"

Brock chuckled nervously, "Well…it's not easy for me to talk about this… I didn't tell anyone yet and I think you are the only one I can tell…" He began.

Van frowned, "Wow…is it that serious? Okay, go on."

"It- it is about Reba…" Brock took a deep breath. "I called her name while I was with Barbra Jean."

Van frowned even more, confused, "You called- what does that mean? I mean, it's not like you did such a bad thi-" He suddenly stopped and made a face, horrified. "Oh, gross! You do realize you are my father-in-law, don't you?"

"I do, but the fact that you are not my biological son helps a lot…" Brock justified himself and sighed.

"Once again, Mr. H, it is so cool that you don't think of me as your son…" Van shot him a sarcastic look.

"It's not that, it's just that I feel better talking to you about certain things knowing that you are not really my son… I mean, I would never talk about that to my own son…"

"Oh man, don't you have a best friend to go to when you need to talk about this stuff?" Van made a face again, shivering lightly at the thought. "I'm married to your daughter, for God's sake!"

"Oh right, since Reba is my best friend I could really go to her and tell her, 'You know, I shouted out your name while having sex with my own wife, what do you think about it?', why didn't I think about that earlier?" Brock replied sarcastically and scoffed.

Van's eyes went wide in horror, "No one said nothing about shouting out… you didn't, did you? You didn't scream her name, right?" He shuddered in shock.

Brock blushed a little and looked down, "I- don't know… I think I did… I mean, I slipped… It can happen, right? And I don't think Barbra Jean noticed… She didn't say anything…"

Van scoffed and opened his mouth to reply, then he closed it again, his eyes going wide as he thought about what Cheyenne had been telling him about Barbra Jean and Reba. "I think she did." He said after a while. "She definitely noticed."

--

Reba stared at the blonde woman in front of her in shock, "Come again?"

"Are you sleeping with my husband?" Barbra Jean repeated bitterly.

Reba scoffed, "Weird, I thought you were the one who was doing that… But I never made you notice, I thought the pregnancy was evident enough…" She answered, her voice dripping sarcasm.

Barbra Jean glared at her, "I don't need your sarcasm now, I need a yes or no."

"No." Reba immediately answered.

"Liar." Barbra Jean narrowed her eyes. "I know you are screwing my husband."

"I am not. You are the only other woman, don't worry… No one will ever take your place." Reba gave her a sarcastic smirk.

"Will you stop it? I'm trying to have a serious conversation here!" Barbra Jean's voice raised and she slammed her hand on the table, making some people at a near table jump. "I know you are doing him. He called your name in bed, for God's sake!"

--

Brock looked at Van, confused by his sudden change of tone, "What do you mean she noticed? How do you know?"

Van sighed, "Cheyenne told me that she had trouble to talk both Barbra Jean and Mrs. H into going out with her tonight, because for some reason Barbra Jean isn't talking to Mrs. H anymore. And she also told me that Mrs. H is upset because she doesn't understand if something is wrong at all…"

"Oh Lord…" Brock whispered, burying his face in his arms.

"So I think Barbra Jean knows and maybe she's mad at Mrs. H because of this…" Van stopped speaking and looked at his father-in-law, who was still silent, hiding his face in his own hands. "Mr. H?" Van hesitantly touched his shoulder.

"Why do I always get people in trouble?"

"Erm…"

Brock chuckled, "No, you don't have to answer, Van… It was a rhetorical question."

Van frowned, "Okay, whatever rhetorical means, you don't always get people in trouble. I mean, you do sometimes… you caused a big mess and now Mrs. H is lonely and sad all the time…"

"She isn't sad…"

"Maybe not, but she is lonely and at her age she should be with someone, her best days have passed already and-"

"Will you stop talking about her like she's old? She is not old! And her best days haven't passed at all, she's still as hot as she was at thirty, if not more…" Brock looked up and a goofy smile formed on his lips.

"Okay, Mr. H, you do know you are talking about my mother-in-law, right?" Van made a face and pulled away a little.

"So what?" Brock shrugged.

"So stop it! Hearing that my mother-in-law is hot is just gross! It's like hearing that my mother is hot… Ew…" Van shuddered. "And what's with all the 'she is hot' thing? You are married and she is your ex-wife… I get smacked by Cheyenne when I say that another girl is hot and perhaps she isn't even my ex-girlfriend!"

Brock swallowed hard and nodded. Van was right, he shouldn't have been thinking about Reba that way. It was just wrong, as wrong as screaming her name while making love to Barbra Jean. But he couldn't help it, things with Barbra Jean were hard and he didn't think he loved her anymore. He didn't even know if he ever did love her at all. All he knew was that Reba was constantly on his mind, he saw her in his dreams, he wanted to hold her close and kiss her and make love to her like he did countless times in the past. But he couldn't, because he messed up and now she wasn't his anymore. All he had was Barbra Jean, and as much as she was sweet and pretty, now more than ever with her new skinny body, he didn't feel the urge to hold her and kiss her every time he looked at her. He didn't like to make love to her and touch that bony body of hers, he would rather touch Reba's curves and feel her body pressed against his, hearing her moan softly in his ear, that sweet, sensual sound that always sent shivers down his spine.

"Mr. H?" Van waved his hand in front of his father-in-law's face and Brock jumped, startled. "Are you okay?" The young man looked at him carefully, slightly worried.

Brock quickly nodded, "Yeah, I'm fine."

"You've been staring into space for a while… and you had the stupidest smile on your face. What were you thinking about?"

"Nothing… You don't really want to know."

--

"He did WHAT?" Reba stared at Barbra Jean in complete shock. She couldn't believe her ears, it was just impossible.

"He called you in bed, yes. He screamed out your name while he was having sex with ME!" Barbra Jean raised her voice again, causing people to look at them.

Reba quickly stood up and took her purse, grabbing Barbra Jean's arm and leading her out of the bar, "Okay, look…" She started, once they were outside and alone, "…you can't think we are having an affair just because of that… He must've slipped, it can happen…"

"After seven years?" Barbra Jean looked sceptical. "Did it ever happen to you?"

Reba bit her lip and looked down. 'I never had sex with anyone at all after the divorce…' She thought to herself. 'How was it supposed to happen to me?'

She looked up at Barbra Jean and shrugged, "No, but that's not the point. It can happen, I know… Sometimes I still talk about Brock as my husband, anyone can slip…"

Barbra Jean glared at her, "Don't try to defend him. He didn't slip, it was more like 'Oh God, yes… oh yes, REBA'…"

Reba blushed violently and looked away, holding up her hand, "Okay, I got it… Stop that now…" She took a deep breath. "Barbra Jean, I swear I don't have an affair with Brock." She looked into her eyes.

Barbra Jean stared back at her, "Maybe you don't. But I know you still have feelings for him." She whispered.

Reba felt her throat get tight and she felt like she was naked and helpless under Barbra Jean's gaze. She swallowed hard and forced herself to not look down.

"I know you still love him, Reba. And he loves you too. I can see it in your eyes every time you look at each other. The air fills up with electricity every time you are close. You can pretend to yourself you don't feel anything for him anymore, but everybody can see that you still do." Barbra Jean's voice was low and full of emotion, but her face didn't show a thing.

'Good poker face she's got there…' Reba thought, biting her lip. "Barbra Jean, I-"

"Things are not going well between Brock and me lately, Reba." Barbra Jean cut her off and sat down on a bench.

Reba stood still and silent, letting her go on.

"We fight a lot. We don't talk to each other anymore. Sometimes it feels like we are complete strangers." Barbra Jean paused and sighed. "I guess it has always been like this, I was just too blind to see it. I shouldn't fool myself, he only married me because I was pregnant, or else there would have been no way he would ever leave you." She smiled somehow sadly and looked up at Reba, who swallowed hard.

"Our marriage wasn't going to work anyway, Barbra Jean, it's not only because you got in between…" She tried to smile, but she couldn't force herself to. She still didn't know where it all was leading but she didn't like it at all.

"Oh you would have found a way to work things out. But then I got in the middle and you didn't have a choice anymore. I was happy at first, I thought he loved me, and when sometimes I noticed how he was still looking at you and talking about you all the time I simply justified him, because he had been married to you for twenty years and it was obviously hard to leave it all behind his back. I thought it would change in a few months. Then a few months turned to a few years and it was still all the same. And we started to drift far apart and at some point I didn't care anymore." Barbra Jean scoffed. "I started looking around for other men and I grew closer to you, weird, isn't it? I thought my husband was still in love with you and yet I couldn't help but feel close to you, you were starting to become my best friend." She paused and smiled. "See, that is the slight difference… Brock loves me like I love you, like a friend…but he's never been 'in love' with me like he is with you."

Reba scoffed and rolled her eyes, "Oh for God's sake, he isn't in love with me! If he were, how come he is married to you?"

Barbra Jean shrugged, "He made a mistake and got me pregnant… after that, marrying me was the least he could do. But now Henry is growing, there's nothing more to keep us together. And I honestly don't know if I want something to."

Reba frowned and took a step towards her, "What do you mean?"

Barbra Jean smiled, "That job offer in Little Rock… I got another one…a better one… And I'm going to accept."

Reba's eyes went wide and she sat down next to Barbra Jean, "But… Brock… Henry…"

"Henry is old enough to go through it. And he will still visit his father as often as possible." Barbra Jean smiled again. "Brock said he doesn't care if I go as long as he gets to see Henry often. I said of course he will. And that I want a divorce."

--

There was a long silence as Van thought about the words his father-in-law had just spoken, then he made a face and stood up, horrified, "Oh gross! You were thinking about her? Ew, ew, ew, ew-"

"I just can't help it…"

"Eww, eww, eww, eww…" Van covered his ears with his hands.

"Van, will you stop it?" Brock raised his voice, losing his patience. "I'm trying to look for advice here."

Van glanced at him and stopped talking, pulling his hands away from his ears and sitting back down on the couch, "Okay, I'm sorry… What are you going to do, then?"

"I don't know…" Brock shrugged. "Barbra Jean is going to Little Rock." He mumbled.

"What?" Van's eyes grew wide. "I thought you and Mrs. H had convinced her to stay…"

"We had… But then she got a better offer and she is going to accept. She asked me for a divorce." Brock looked down.

His words were followed by a long silence as Van was speechless for a while, "Well… what are you gonna do, then? Are you going to divorce her?"

"I don't have much choice, do I? She wants a divorce and I don't really feel like fighting for her at all… She is young and beautiful, it's only fair for me to let her go and find her soulmate somewhere… let her be happy once in a while. I'm a lousy husband, I've always been and-"

"That is not true." Van suddenly cut him off. "Mrs. H sometimes talks about the past when we go to work… How it was when you were still married and when she worked with you, for example. She says she misses those days… and that you were happy together…"

"We were…" Brock smiled a little, remembering.

"Mr. H…" Van laid a hand on his shoulder and looked into his eyes, "…even if you're going to divorce Barbra Jean, stay away from Mrs. H… She is trying to move on, she doesn't need you there to remind her how good life was before the separation and before Barbra Jean, and all that…"

Brock took a deep breath and swallowed hard; he knew Van was right, he should let her go too, but still he couldn't stop loving her. "I know… That is just…right. But I don't know if I can do that, Van… She's still there, you see, in the back of my head and in front of my eyes, every time I look around I see her, and it's driving me crazy because I think of how stupid I was to let her go in order to marry Barbra Jean… and I didn't even love Barbra Jean, I never did… All I can think of is Reba, I can't get her out of my mind… I tried over and over, but I can't… It's like this presence always here to remind me what I missed leaving her…"

Van looked at him sympathetically, "Do you love her?" He suddenly asked, and his question left Brock lost for words for a second, wondering how much he should tell his son-in-law about his feelings for his ex-wife.

--

"You want WHAT?" Reba almost yelled, shocked at Barbra Jean's words.

"I want a divorce." Barbra Jean simply stated. "I can't be married to him anymore, Reba… Don't you see how fake our marriage is? He doesn't love me and I don't love him…not anymore, at least…"

"And what happened to the 'without you there's a hole where my heart should be' crap? Weren't you falling in love again because of that?" Reba tried to think of all the possible reasons to make her change her mind.

Barbra Jean chuckled, "That was some silly sentence he probably read somewhere… It was romantic and sweet, of course, but he didn't mean it. He looked at you when he said that, didn't you notice?"

Reba frowned, "I… oh for Pete's sake, what the hell are you talking about? Are you crazy? He didn't look at me, okay? He doesn't feel anything for me and I don't feel anything for him, it's over, once and for all. It's been over for years now." She glared at her.

"Liar." Barbra Jean smiled. "You are fooling yourself, Reba… Can't you see how much you still love each other? When you look at him, when you smile to him… every move of your body says that you want him. And it's the same for him."

"It's not-"

"Remember the other day when you brushed your hip against his in the kitchen?" Barbra Jean suddenly said, cutting her off.

Reba nodded, frowning, "Yeah, but that was just an-"

"An accident, I know. But still it sent jolts through your body, didn't it?"

"It- no, of course it didn't."

"Liar."

"Would you please stop that? You're getting on my nerves!" Reba snapped, folding her arms over her chest.

Barbra Jean chuckled, "Well, you are a liar… You are lying to yourself in the first place. And to him. And to everybody else. Why don't you just admit you love him and he loves you? Wouldn't everything be easier that way?"

"No, everything would be a lot harder… It would be horrible… The kids would be all over me… and you would go away…" Reba buried her face in her hands, sighing.

Barbra Jean smiled, "I will go away anyway, Reba… but that doesn't mean I will stop bothering you… You can't get rid of me so easily!" She made her look up and smiled again. "But I swear I'd be a lot happier to talk to you on the phone one day and find out that you are with the man you love… again."

Reba looked down, "Why are you saying that now? You freaked out earlier when you thought I was having an affair with Brock…"

"Well, I'd be mad if you were sneaking around behind my back. I mean, you are my best friend and he is my husband, that would be just awful… but I just need to sign the papers and he's all yours."

Reba shook her head, "I don't want you to sign those papers."

"Why? Because every marriage is worth trying to work things out? There is nothing left to our marriage, Reba. We are just friends living together. Once in a while we get intimacy… and he thinks about you." She chuckled when Reba blushed. "And as much as I love you and you are my best friend, I don't like when the man I am having sex with calls someone else's name… No fun at all…" She smiled. "Trust me, I'm better off alone and away, looking for the right one… And he is too, though he won't have to look, he already has the right one in front of him."

Reba swallowed hard and nodded, "You got pretty stubborn lately, ya know? There's not much I can say to make you change your mind and stay, is there?"

Barbra Jean chuckled and shook her head, "Nope… But I will miss you a lot, best friend!" She pulled her in a bone-breaking hug.

"Barbra Jean… I'm breakable…" Reba coughed, trying to pull out of her hug.

"Sorry…" Barbra Jean smiled and hugged her once more. "So, now that everything is settled… are you gonna give him another chance?"

"I'll think about it… once the papers are signed… maybe…"

"He won't let you down this time, he really has changed… And he loves you very much…"

"I hope you are right…" Reba smiled a little.

"I am, peaches, I'm always right when it comes to this stuff." Barbra Jean winked and got up. "Shall we go back inside? Cheyenne is probably looking for us."

"She didn't really see a friend of hers, did she?" Reba chuckled.

"Of course not… but you raised her well, she knows when it's time to get out." Barbra Jean laughed and walked inside, dragging Reba behind.

--

Brock looked at his son-in-law and thought about his question, taking his time to answer. Did he love Reba? Of course he did. He never stopped, he was just stupid enough to think he had, but it was just a weak moment. And yet that weak moment had caused the biggest mess ever. Would there be many other weak moments in his life from now on? He didn't know that. Could it risk to hurt her again? He'd rather kill himself. Maybe Van was right, he just had to stay away from her and leave her alone, watching her move on and find a new guy who would love her more than he did. But he couldn't do that, and he couldn't deny he loved her. He loved her and at the same time he was afraid to hurt her. He knew he probably would end up hurting her if he asked her for another chance, but he couldn't just step away and letting her go because that would kill him. It was just living hell. It was a big circle with no end.

"Mr. H? Do you love her?" Van repeated, looking at him.

Brock swallowed and nodded, "I do, Van. I love her so much, but I don't wanna hurt her again. And she is over me now, I should convince myself that it's over, I don't stand a chance."

Van gently squeezed his shoulder, "It will be alright, Mr. H… I'll let you know if she is seeing someone and hopefully in a few months you'll able to make a move on her again… Maybe asking her out or something… She won't say no if she isn't seeing anyone." He smiled.

Brock smiled back at him, "Thank you, Van. For listening…and for doing this. I owe you big time. You're better than a son to me."

Van patted his shoulder and winked, "Anything for you…dad."

Brock glared at him, "Okay, let's go back to Mr. H, shall we?"

Van nodded, "Yeah, I don't like calling you dad, Mr. H… it just sounds wrong…" He made a face and Brock laughed, leaning back against the couch and turning on the TV again.

--

"I'm so glad you guys sorted it all out…" Cheyenne smiled as she got out of her mother's car in front of her own house. "I hate to see you fight…" She smiled again and hugged both her mother and Barbra Jean. "Mom, can Van leave Lizzie at your place tonight? I don't like the idea to get her out of bed at this time of the night…"

Reba smiled, "Sure he can… I love to have her over…"

"Great… tell Van to come home, please…" Cheyenne hugged her mother again and kissed her cheek. "I'll see you tomorrow. I love you." She smiled and hugged Barbra Jean too before walking into her house.

Reba and Barbra Jean watched her get inside and they quickly drove to Reba house after that. "I'm gonna take Henry…" Barbra Jean whispered when they walked inside, finding Van and Brock both asleep on the couch.

Reba nodded and walked over to Van, gently poking his shoulder, "Van… Van… Cheyenne wants you to go home now…" She mumbled in his ear.

He stirred a little and opened an eye, looking at her, "Oh Mrs. H… you're back…"

She smiled, "Yeah… I dropped off Cheyenne, she said she wants you to go home now but you should leave Elizabeth here since she is already asleep…"

He nodded as he started to get up, "Is it okay with you?"

"Sure… You can pick her up tomorrow…" Reba smiled and hugged him briefly, walking him to the door.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Mrs. H… goodnight."

"'Night, Van…" She waved at him and watched him leave, then she turned around when she heard Barbra Jean coming down the stairs with Henry in her arms. "Do you need help?" She asked, walking over to the blonde.

Barbra Jean shook her head, "Nope, I'm fine…" She smiled. "Can you wake up Brock, please? And tell him to come home? We have some things we need to talk about…"

Reba nodded, "Okay, I'll wake him up… And I'll call you in the morning, okay?"

Barbra Jean nodded and accepted Reba's quick hug before walking out of the back door after whispering 'goodnight'.

Reba walked over to the couch again and smiled at Brock asleep on it. She still loved him, there was no denying that. And she had been happy to find out he still loved her too. It was good to know that she had a chance to be happy with him again.

"Brock…" She gently shook his arm, trying to wake him up. He just stirred but didn't open his eyes. "Brock…" She called him again a little louder. This time he slowly opened an eye, then he blinked a few times looking up at her.

"Reba…" His voice was hoarse and he looked tired, but Reba felt herself melt completely at the smile he gave her.

"Hey… Barbra Jean said to wake you up and send you home…" She chuckled. "She said you have to talk about something…" Her smile faded away and she looked down.

"Did she tell you?" He asked, getting up and stretching his arms.

She nodded, "Yeah, she did… We had a long conversation about it… I'm so sorry, Brock…" She looked up at him and patted his shoulder lightly.

He smiled and shrugged, "You shouldn't be… I am not… There was nothing left for us, Reba, it's better off this way…"

Reba smiled and nodded, "If you say so… Now go, don't make her wait…" She smiled again and walked into the kitchen.

Brock followed her closely and felt his heart ache with love for her at the sight of that smile and at the sound of her tender voice. He loved her so much, he just couldn't let her go, no matter what he told Van, no matter what he promised. He just couldn't. "Reba?" She turned around to him with a questioning look, and, God, she was so beautiful, Brock thought he had never seen anything more perfect than she was, with her sparkling blue eyes and her red hair that seemed to shine in the faint light of the kitchen.

"Yes?"

Her voice… even in the shortest word she could amaze him with how sweet her voice was, and how her lips moved when she spoke, those lips that he craved to touch again, so soft and beautiful in his memories. Before he knew it, he brought his hand to her cheek and pulled her in a soft kiss.

Reba kissed him back instinctively, but she stared at him in shock when he pulled away. "What…" She didn't know what to say, she didn't know what to do. She was just waiting for him to say anything at all, she wanted to know what he felt and why he kissed her.

Brock just smiled, "Just so you know…I already signed those papers." He whispered, pecking her lips once more before heading for the door with a smile on her face, "Goodnight, Reba…"

She watched him leave and closed the door, leaning heavily against it and bringing a hand to her mouth, lightly touching her lips. It still felt so real, she could almost feel his lips still on hers. It had been a delicate, loving kiss that had melted her heart, making her understand how much she really loved him.

He was her one chance to be happy and she wouldn't let him go again, not this time.


End file.
